Just as Wu Qiaoqiao was struggling to find the words to describe Niu Niu's dark face, she suddenly heard laughter coming from the side.

Turning her head, she saw her own daughter lying face down, smiling at her. Liu Xiangqin always laughed uncontrollably whenever she saw her mother making that expression at her little cousin.

"Mom, don't always make that face when you see Niu Niu. So what if she's dark-skinned? She'll get fairer with time."

When Wu Qiaoqiao heard Liu Xiangqin say that, she knew that made sense. However, she couldn't help but sigh every time she saw it. Why? You know, when Niu Niu first came back, she was a fair-skinned and tender little dumpling, soft, cuddly, and well-behaved. Later, she followed her two naughty boys up trees and down rivers. If she hadn't always grabbed Niu Niu and applied sunscreen cream to her, her little face would definitely have been sunburned and peeled.

“I know that makes sense, but I was thinking that we were supposed to go to your dad’s place before school starts, and then we’ll definitely have to send the little girl to your Aunt Lin in Beijing. I can already imagine what kind of expression she’ll have then.”

Upon hearing Wu Qiaoqiao's words, Liu Xiangqin didn't remain lying in bed. Instead, she sat up and asked Wu Qiaoqiao.

"Mom, we received a message from Dad last year asking us to go with him to the army this summer. Why haven't we heard anything yet? There are less than two weeks left before school starts. Besides, my two younger brothers haven't seen Dad since they can remember. For the past three years, they've only seen pictures of him. I'm afraid they won't even recognize him by then."

When Liu Xiangqin sat up, Wu Qiaoqiao walked over and sat down next to her, pulling Liu Xiangqin into her arms. Liu Xiangqin felt happy leaning against Wu Qiaoqiao's chest. Wu Qiaoqiao had told Liu Mingfeng that she would treat Liu Xiangjun and Liu Xiangqin as her own children, and she had done so all these years, treating them like twins, disciplining them when necessary and loving them when appropriate.

"Xiang Qin, don't worry, your dad should have news from you in the next few days."

Just as Liu Xiangqin was about to speak to Wu Qiaoqiao after hearing her say that, she suddenly heard the postman's shout from outside.

"Is Comrade Wu Qiaoqiao here? Here is your telegram."

This shout woke up the other three little ones. Wu Qiaoqiao went out to get the telegram, while Liu Xiangqin took care of the three little ones getting up, especially Niu Niu.

As soon as Wu Qiaoqiao stepped out of her room, she saw Liu Xiangjun coming out of the opposite room. It turned out that Liu Xiangjun hadn't been sleeping, but was studying in his room. Hearing the call, he also came out of his room and bumped into Wu Qiaoqiao face to face.

Wu Qiaoqiao saw that Liu Xiangjun had not taken a nap and did not say anything. The two passed each other, one went to the door to get the telegram, and the other went into the room behind Wu Qiaoqiao to help Liu Xiangqin get the three children up.

After Wu Qiaoqiao greeted the postman, signed the document, and received the telegram, Liu Xiangjun and Liu Xiangqin finished tidying up their three younger siblings, and then the five children came out.

As soon as Liu Xiangjun and his four companions came out, they saw the postman who was about to leave. They greeted him and, after he left, the five of them gathered around Wu Qiaoqiao and looked at the telegram in her hand.

Seeing the five children's eager expressions, Wu Qiaoqiao smiled and handed the telegram to the two older children before turning around and going into the room. She had already seen the contents of the telegram, and she imagined that the little ones must be very happy now.

Sure enough, after she entered the room, she heard several children screaming happily outside. Even the most composed Liu Xiangjun was the same. However, the screaming stopped quickly. Then Wu Qiaoqiao heard the sound of children running outside, and the sound was getting closer and closer to her.

As soon as Wu Qiaoqiao looked up, she saw five people running towards her. They quickly arrived in front of her, and the children asked her all at once when they were going to Liu Mingfeng's place. Even Niu Niu joined her two older brothers in calling out, but the way they said it sounded a bit off.

"Mom, Mom, when are we leaving? When are we leaving?"

Looking at the bouncing little girl in front of her, noticing her disheveled hair, Wu Qiaoqiao quickly picked her up and sat her on her lap. She picked up a comb and started combing her hair and braiding it. At first, she hadn't noticed that the little girl had gained weight and grown taller in the two months she had been there, and her body was quite firm. However, she had also gotten darker.

While combing Niu Niu's hair, Liu Qiaoqiao answered the questions Liu Xiangjun and the others asked. Wu Qiaoqiao said that after tidying up the house a bit in the next few days and resolving any issues, they could go buy tickets.

When the Xiang brothers, Xiang Dang and Xiang Guo, heard Wu Qiaoqiao say that they would be setting off to find their father in the next few days, they screamed with joy and ran outside. They wanted to find their friends and tell them that they were going to see their father, the great hero.

Since they could remember, the two brothers, Xiang Dang and Xiang Guo, had never seen their father. When they saw that all the other children in the village had fathers but they didn't, they would often come back to ask Wu Qiaoqiao. Wu Qiaoqiao would show them a picture of Liu Mingfeng and point to the man in military uniform in the picture, telling them that this was their father. He was a great hero who was on a mission and would come to reunite with them when the mission was completed.

From then on, whenever their playmates talked about their fathers, the two brothers would also talk about their fathers, recounting the things they learned about their fathers from Wu Qiaoqiao, such as how their fathers could shoot guns, drive cars, and even do martial arts. Their playmates didn't believe them, so they went home to ask their own fathers. Then the old men in the village would tell their children that the two brothers' father was indeed a great hero, but they had never met him. So now that they knew they were going to meet their father, the two brothers were very happy.

The little girl sitting on Wu Qiaoqiao saw the two older boys running outside, so she twisted her body, trying to get down, while calling out "twins."

"Brother, brother, wait for me, I'm with Niu Niu."

Hearing Niu Niu's call, the twins stopped shouting, though their faces showed displeasure. They turned around and waited for Niu Niu to finish combing her hair. Seeing this, Wu Qiaoqiao quickly finished combing Niu Niu's hair and put it on the ground. Then, the twins each took one of Niu Niu's hands and ran outside.

When Liu Xiangjun and Liu Xiangqin saw that the three little ones had run out to play, they said goodbye to Wu Qiaoqiao and then went to pack their things. Although they had received news during the Spring Festival last year that they would be joining the army this summer, most of their things were already packed, but some things they still used regularly still needed to be packed.

After watching the children leave, Wu Qiaoqiao sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) and thought for a while. It seemed she would be busy tomorrow. Since she was already preparing to go with the army, she needed to give them the necessary instructions.